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"Yokai x Digital Science" event held at Teikyo University Recurrent College,Kasumigaseki Campus

The Teikyo University Recurrent College GJS Symposium "Yokai x Digital Science" was held at the Teikyo University Kasumigaseki Campus on Thursday, May 9, 2024. The symposium was co-hosted by the Department of Department of Global Japanese Studies in the Faculty of Languages and Cultures and Okinaga Research Institute, and deepened discussion on how the existence of yokai is changing by making invisible yokai visible.
Mizuki Watanabe, Senior Assistant Professor Department of Global Japanese Studies at our university who specializes in cultural anthropology, coordinated a diverse group of speakers, including researchers in folklore, viral biology, and digital semiotics, as well as an artist specializing in yokai. They provided topics and held a panel discussion centered on a common interest across all research fields: "the effort to make visible the invisible known as yokai."
Masanobu Kagawa, Chief Curator of the Hyogo Prefectural Museum of History, examined how yokai changed from objects of fear to objects of entertainment during the Edo period, and how people began to seek out the appearance and shape of yokai through ``yokai encyclopedias'' that were enjoyed by looking at them, as well as the perception of yokai among modern Japanese people.
Matt Meyer, a yokai artist and researcher, explained the process and techniques he uses to depict yokai, which include traveling around the country to find materials and meticulously researching the scenery and customs of the time, and spoke about why Japanese yokai culture fascinates people overseas.
Professor Masaharu Takemura of the Tokyo University of Science Graduate School of Liberal Arts and Sciences introduced his attempt to understand yokai from a biological mechanism perspective, using the demons that appear in Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba as a subject, in order to examine their similarities with viruses, which are the subject of his research.
Kentaro Matsumoto, Professor in the Department of English at Dokkyo University's Faculty of Languages and Cultures, considered what meaning the ever-changing existence of yokai holds for us in an age where AI is updating the image of yokai and yokai are being used as local characters.
The panel discussion, "How will digital science change the way we think about monsters?" saw a lively exchange of opinions between the speakers. The event was a great success, with over 90 participants, ranging from students to working adults, asking enthusiastic questions. Students from the Department of Department of Global Japanese Studies who attended the event commented, "I learned that Japan and Europe have different ways of thinking about monsters and ghosts, and it made me want to study more," and "I was able to hear from experts in science, and the logical discussions were stimulating."
Teikyo University Recurrent College will continue to give back the diverse knowledge of Teikyo University to society and provide a place of learning for many people.

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